cyclops2

No bull.
I was going thru a skid of 2 x 4 studs a H D and got into some White Pines that were as light as Balsa. Frame & spar weights. NO CRAP. Beautifull stuff, that I use every year for 60 model boats for kids, that I give away. Take the time every so often.

Can you imagine the totaly USELESS strength of a structural wall ? Our gain.

Rich

dhal22

i'm a little fuzzy on your post. other than looking at white pine as a spar choice i missed the rest of it.

cyclops2

The rest was just " wood filler ".

HighPlains

My Feedback: (1)

I've got a Grape Pains kit of an Ugly Stik 60 that the balsa used for ribs was 18 POUNDS/ft^3. And that was the better wood. So perhaps they could have used pine and it would not have been any heavier.

Laird SS

While some balsa is heavier than others, I still think balsa is the better choice. If the pine were usable, more people would be singing its praise.

Just my $.02 worth

dhal22

i assumed he was talking about using the pine as spar/former material.

shootnstarz

I've been a carpenter/cabinet maker for nearly 40 years and I've seen some white pine that's light as balsa, probably would work for stringers. I used to make stringers out of lodgepole pine which is light and strong also. Now I use clear, straight-grained spruce, probably the best strenght to weight ratio other than balsa. Pine would never be suitable for sheets and that's where the real cost of scratch building is. Stringers are cheap to make.

I've also used 1/8 birch door skins for formers and ribs but haven't been able to find any in a while. It is close to light aircraft ply in the weight department and just as strong.

Rick

Rodney

I have also found some great pieces of white pine and spruce in the local lumber yards (you have to pick through a lot of pieces to find the good ones) that make great stringers and spars. When you find those rare close grained, straight grained pieces with no pitch pockets or knots, you can have some pretty nice building material at real reasonable prices.